Johann Strauss II Quiz Question and Answers
Q1. What was the full birth name of the composer known as Johann Strauss II?
A. Johann Baptist Strauss II
B. Johann Michael Strauss
C. Johann Georg Strauss
D. Johann Franz Strauss
Answer: A. Johann Baptist Strauss II
Q2. In what year did Johann Strauss II make his debut as a composer and conductor?
A. 1842
B. 1844
C. 1846
D. 1848
Answer: B. 1844
Q3. Who was Johann Strauss II’s father, a fellow composer of waltzes?
A. Johann Strauss I
B. Joseph Lanner
C. Eduard Strauss
D. Josef Strauss
Answer: A. Johann Strauss I
Q4. What profession did Johann Strauss II’s father want him to pursue instead of music?
A. Lawyer
B. Banker
C. Teacher
D. Physician
Answer: B. Banker
Q5. Which instrument did Johann Strauss II secretly learn as a child against his father’s wishes?
A. Piano
B. Cello
C. Violin
D. Flute
Answer: C. Violin
Q6. What was the title of Johann Strauss II’s first published waltz, composed in 1844?
A. Gunstwerber
B. Sinngedichte
C. Herzenslust
D. Tausend und eine Nacht
Answer: B. Sinngedichte
Q7. During the Revolutions of 1848, which side did Johann Strauss II support, leading to his brief arrest?
A. The revolutionaries
B. The monarchy
C. Neutral observers
D. Foreign allies
Answer: A. The revolutionaries
Q8. In what year did Johann Strauss I die, allowing his son to merge their orchestras?
A. 1847
B. 1849
C. 1851
D. 1853
Answer: B. 1849
Q9. What honorary military position did Johann Strauss II receive in 1845?
A. Kapellmeister of the 1st Vienna Regiment
B. Director of the Imperial Court Orchestra
C. Kapellmeister of the 2nd Vienna Citizen’s Regiment
D. Conductor of the Royal Guard Band
Answer: C. Kapellmeister of the 2nd Vienna Citizen’s Regiment
Q10. To which country did Johann Strauss II tour annually from 1856 to 1865, performing waltzes?
A. France
B. Russia
C. England
D. Poland
Answer: B. Russia
Q11. What health crisis led Johann Strauss II to take a seven-week vacation in 1853?
A. Scarlet fever
B. Respiratory infection
C. Nervous breakdown
D. Injury from touring
Answer: C. Nervous breakdown
Q12. In what year did Johann Strauss II finally become KK Hofballmusikdirektor?
A. 1855
B. 1863
C. 1870
D. 1872
Answer: B. 1863
Q13. Which brother of Johann Strauss II temporarily led the orchestra during his 1853 breakdown?
A. Eduard
B. Ferdinand
C. Josef
D. Alois
Answer: C. Josef
Q14. What was the name of Johann Strauss II’s first wife, a singer he married in 1862?
A. Adele Deutsch
B. Henrietta Treffz
C. Angelika Dittrich
D. Emilie Trampusch
Answer: B. Henrietta Treffz
Q15. To marry his third wife, Adele Deutsch, in 1887, what did Johann Strauss II convert to?
A. Protestantism
B. Judaism
C. Lutheranism
D. He remained Catholic
Answer: A. Protestantism
Q16. Which operetta by Johann Strauss II premiered in 1874 and is considered a Viennese classic?
A. Der Zigeunerbaron
B. Eine Nacht in Venedig
C. Die Fledermaus
D. Waldmeister
Answer: C. Die Fledermaus
Q17. What is the subtitle of Johann Strauss II’s famous waltz Op. 314, premiered in 1867?
A. Tales from the Vienna Woods
B. The Blue Danube
C. Emperor Waltz
D. Wine, Women and Song
Answer: B. The Blue Danube
Q18. Which polka by Johann Strauss II, Op. 214, satirizes press gossip and is one of his most playful works?
A. Thunder and Lightning
B. Unter Donner und Blitz
C. Tritsch-Tratsch
D. Im Krapfenwald’l
Answer: C. Tritsch-Tratsch
Q19. In what year did Johann Strauss II tour the United States, conducting at the Boston World’s Peace Jubilee?
A. 1869
B. 1872
C. 1875
D. 1880
Answer: B. 1872
Q20. Which famous composer inscribed a quote from The Blue Danube on a fan for Strauss’s wife, adding a humorous note?
A. Richard Wagner
B. Richard Strauss
C. Johannes Brahms
D. Franz Liszt
Answer: C. Johannes Brahms
Q21. What was the cause of Johann Strauss II’s death on June 3, 1899?
A. Heart failure
B. Pleuropneumonia
C. Tuberculosis
D. Stroke
Answer: B. Pleuropneumonia
Q22. Which operetta by Johann Strauss II, premiered in 1885, features gypsy themes and is his second most famous stage work?
A. Die Fledermaus
B. Prinz Methusalem
C. Der Zigeunerbaron
D. Cagliostro in Wien
Answer: C. Der Zigeunerbaron
Q23. What was the name of the only sacred choral work composed by Johann Strauss II in 1844?
A. Seid umschlungen, Millionen!
B. Tu qui regis totum orbem
C. Fruhlingsstimmen
D. Morgenblatter
Answer: B. Tu qui regis totum orbem
Q24. Which waltz by Johann Strauss II, Op. 437, was dedicated to Emperor Franz Joseph I?
A. Kaiser-Walzer
B. Wiener Blut
C. Künstlerleben
D. Geschichten aus dem Wienerwald
Answer: A. Kaiser-Walzer
Q25. During his 1872 U.S. tour, what amusing trick did Johann Strauss II’s valet play on overzealous fans?
A. Signing programs with a fake name
B. Using the dog’s hair as his own
C. Pretending to conduct blindfolded
D. Composing a waltz on the spot
Answer: B. Using the dog’s hair as his own